To Explore, We Must Risk Failure | Douglas Vakoch | TEDxBreckenridge

What if every advanced civilization is listening and not transmitting? Reaching out takes courage, and exploration requires standing up for what we want in our lives (even if it disappoints other people). Maybe we’ll find out that we are that long-lived civilization that we’ve been looking for.

Dr. Douglas Vakoch is an astrobiologist—a scientist who searches for evidence of life beyond Earth. He is president of METI (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence), a research organization in San Francisco that transmits powerful, intentional radio signals to nearby stars in the hope of eliciting replies from advanced civilizations. He is also a clinical psychologist and director of Green Psychotherapy, PC, a Northern California psychological practice, as well as professor emeritus of clinical psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. This talk was given at a local TEDx event at TEDxBreckenridge in Breckenridge, CO, and was produced independently of the TED Conferences. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx Dr. Douglas Vakoch is an astrobiologist—a scientist who searches for evidence of life beyond Earth. He is president of METI (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence), a research organization in San Francisco that transmits powerful, intentional radio signals to nearby stars in the hope of eliciting replies from advanced civilizations. He is also a clinical psychologist and director of Green Psychotherapy, PC, a Northern California psychological practice, as well as professor emeritus of clinical psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Dr. Vakoch’s work has been featured in such publications as "The New York Times" and "TIME" magazine. As a science popularizer, he has appeared in numerous documentaries on networks ranging from ABC to the BBC, with recent interviews on PBS’s "NOVA Wonders," the Science Channel’s "NASA’s Unexplained Files," and the History Channel’s "In Search Of" with Zachary Quinto. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx